"Then let blood debts be paid in blood!" A cold gleam blazed in Shi Ziling's eyes. His war spear pointed straight at Shi Yi, his killing intent surging like a tide.
Please proceed,
"How dare you! Shi Ziling, Yi'er is our clan's future supreme divine being. Lay a hand on him, and you'll turn heaven and earth upside down!" Shi Yuan roared, only to be struck from the side by the arriving Fourth Grandfather.
"Stop! The timber has already been made into a boat. No matter what, our Shi Clan's future supreme must not be lost!" Another clan elder arrived. His name was Shi Li, and he stood in front of Shi Yi.
"Then give me back my son's bone first!" Shi Ziling looked possessed by madness. He swept his spear forward like a flood dragon crossing the sky, piercing Shi Li's protective treasure and sending him flying.
Nearly half of Shi Li's body exploded. He never got back up and came close to dying.
The husband and wife acted in perfect accord. Qin Yining darted forward, her gaze icy, and cut open Shi Yi's chest, forcibly extracting the Supreme Bone. Divine light instantly illuminated the entire underground palace.
"You're mad! You're both utterly mad!" Shi Yi's mother abruptly raised her head, her eyes brimming with viciousness. She shrieked, "You dare hurt Yi'er? Aren't you afraid of destroying the Supreme Bone? Aren't you afraid of becoming sinners of the Shi Clan?!"
"Sixth Sister-in-law, you're the sinner, and you're the one who's gone mad!" Qin Yining sneered. "So what if the Supreme Bone is destroyed? It was my son's bone to begin with. You needn't concern yourself with it."
"If my son dies, so what if I descend into madness? Do you really think I wouldn't dare destroy those double pupils?!" Shi Ziling roared, advancing step by step.
Just then, a hazy radiance enveloped the entire underground palace. It came from the treasured bone of a primordial remnant, sealing off this stretch of heaven and earth.
"Zi Ling, stay your hand for now!" An ancestor appeared and urged him, "Every last fault lies with that wicked woman. According to our ancestral rules, you may kill or flay her as you please."
"Zi Ling, we can take our time sorting out right and wrong, but you must not recklessly harm the double pupils. How about you take charge of Shi Manor in ten years?" another ancestor said.
Shi Ziling sneered, but he did calm down a little.
His young son's life hung by a thread, and there might still be hope of saving him. This truly was no time for a bloody fight.
If there really was no way to reverse his fate, he could slaughter them until heaven and earth turned upside down then!
He turned, preparing to kill the wicked woman first and vent the hatred in his heart.
"Killing her outright would be too merciful. Cripple her first. I want her to wish she were dead!" Qin Yining said, her voice icy and a cold gleam glimmering deep in her eyes.
"Don't even think about it!" Shi Yi's mother cried out in terror.
She knew full well how terrifying a woman could become when driven mad. So frightened was she that she severed her own heart meridians and died on the spot. At the very end, she stared fixedly at Shi Ziling and his wife, her eyes filled with resentment. "My father and the Rain Clan won't let you get away with this!"
How pitiful and laughable. Even as she died, she thought only of revenge, never once looking at her own son.
The conflict subsided for the moment, but the atmosphere in the underground palace remained oppressive.
Shi Yuan and Shi Li hurried to examine Shi Yi. Wisps of radiant light flowed from his double pupils, slowly wrapping around him like a cocoon and nourishing his body.
"The Supreme Bone was only just removed. Can it still be reattached?" Fourth Grandfather asked urgently.
"It would be difficult. Once it's taken out, it's very hard to reattach it immediately. The Supreme Bone was still being nurtured, and Hao'er is too young to withstand being put through this again and again." Qin Yining held the dying little Shi in her arms, tears welling in her beautiful eyes.
"Is there really no other way?" Shi Ziling asked in a trembling voice, grief rising within him.
At that moment, Shi Zhao, who had arrived some time ago, finally managed to suppress her chaotic emotions. She suddenly interjected, "Extracting the true blood from the Supreme Bone might prolong little Hao's life."
Her voice was cool and calm, as though she were discussing something utterly insignificant. Yet to everyone listening, it was a thunderclap out of a clear sky, stunning them all at once.
"No! The Supreme Bone must not be lost. It represents a future supreme of our Shi Clan. We absolutely cannot allow it to perish because of this!" an ancestor said in an overbearing voice.
"There's no reason we can't!" Shi Ziling declared decisively. "This is my son's bone. What belongs to him belongs to him. So what if it's destroyed? As long as he survives, even without this bone, I believe he can still rise and roam supreme between heaven and earth!"
He looked at his wife, only to see her shake her head, her face filled with sorrow.
"It won't work. Another essence of blood has already fused into the Supreme Bone. Its true blood is no longer pure. Extracting it would be useless." Qin Yining sighed. With her knowledge, how could she not have considered that?
She turned and suddenly called, "Little Zhao, come here."
Shi Ziling's expression shifted. He said nothing, merely taking his young son into his arms.
At the edge of the underground palace, Shi Zhao instinctively walked over. Then, as though something had suddenly occurred to her, she looked around and saw everyone's eyes fixed tightly on her. Her heart lurched.
She snapped fully to her senses in an instant, even wanting to bolt through the door and scream at the top of her lungs.
Oh no, had I become a stand-in?
"Auntie, you aren't thinking of..." Shi Zhao shook her head frantically, her little face deathly pale.
"Little Zhao, only by giving the Supreme Bone to you can I feel a little better. I believe Hao'er would agree if he were awake. No one will blame you."
Qin Yining walked toward her with tears in her eyes. "Consider it your aunt begging you. If Hao'er... really does meet with misfortune, at least let us have something to hold on to."
"No one but you has the right to lay a finger on Hao'er's bone," Shi Ziling said as well.
Shi Zhao could no longer take in any of it. Her eyes were filled with terror and pleading. She had never imagined that something like this could happen to her.
She desperately wanted to flee, but she could not escape and was knocked unconscious.
"..."
Countless runes covered the Supreme Bone, densely packed, as though the mysteries of all the heavens flowed through them.
But when it was implanted into Shi Zhao's body, not only did blazing radiance erupt, but the stars of the heavens, mountains, rivers, grasses, and trees also manifested. An inexplicable chanting arose as well, making everyone's hearts tremble.
Yet no one present could discern what was happening. They all assumed it was the Supreme Bone's wondrous power.
Finally, the visions receded and the runes condensed, transforming into the Unique Supreme Origin Bone. It sank into Shi Zhao's chest, enveloped in a powerful mass of vigorous life force.
Qin Yining passed her hand over it. Runes surged forth, healing the wound, stopping the bleeding, and restoring the flesh.
"It worked!" Fourth Grandfather forced a trace of a smile onto his aged face.
"Although the Supreme Bone is damaged, it has lost none of its wondrous power. Good, good. I nearly misjudged her just now. This little girl possesses extraordinary talent as well." An ancestor breathed a sigh of relief.
"Since the Supreme Bone has been preserved, we'll stop here for today. We can discuss the rest after returning to the manor," said the most senior ancestor, who had not emerged from seclusion in thirty years.
Shi Yuan's gaze was dark. He had never imagined that Shi Ziling and his wife would be so decisive, daring to forcibly reclaim the Supreme Bone and immediately implant it into their adopted daughter.
In his eyes, this move was simply brilliant beyond compare. Not only had they directly defused the pressure from the ancestors and the clan, but they still retained a future supreme.
One could only say that those with black hearts saw darkness in everything!
And
Within Martial King Manor, the winds and clouds shifted for a time.
Many rare medicinal treasures were sent to two separate places. Poor little Shi was simply too young and frail. Even taking precious medicine every day could not restore him.
The one blessing amid misfortune was that a little supreme true blood remained in his body, nourishing him and temporarily freeing him from mortal danger. But after losing the Supreme Bone, his essence, vitality, and spirit seemed to have dispersed as well. His entire body showed signs of regressing and shrinking.
Shi Ziling's overwhelming grief turned to rage, and he began settling accounts. He absolutely refused to believe that the venomous woman had acted alone. Others must have been involved.
"Have you investigated it thoroughly?" he asked.
"We've found out. The children who took Hao'er out to play were all from collateral branches of her lineage."
"And the shadowy figures in the underground palace most likely came from her maiden clan, the Rain Clan."
"Moreover, there seem to have been certain other people involved..."
Before you continue